Best Mistake
by AndiFO
Summary: Pepper comes back to LA two years after leaving her job to reveal to Tony her true reasons for leaving....New Chapter! Rating may change later. Fluff/Drama/Romance
1. Prologue

**AN: **Hey guys this is the first multi chapter story I've written so I hope you guys like it. This is just a little prologue that I'm using to carry out a bigger story, which is what happens after the two years, or "the present". Like I said, this is my first multi chapter story, and only the second story I've posted here. If you're interested in the rest of the story, **PLEASE REVIEW. **Takes two seconds, one word, "good" "more!" "interested" whatever. I know this first part moves a bit fast, but like I said it's just the prologue so the rest will be a bit different.

Oh and please no flames, though constructive criticism is welcomed...even though I know I do have to work on improving some techniques in my writing...

Also the italics are Peppers thoughts. Most everything is through her perspective unless I state otherwise.

Enjoy! :D

**Prologue**

Sitting in the car Tony had sent to pick her up, she thought about what it would be like seeing him again. She hadn't seen him now in over a year and a half. She still spoke to him occasionally because she decided to end things well when she quit, but she hadn't _physically _seen him in a while. She still wasn't sure she was ready to see him again, truth-be-told, but she knew that as time passed she couldn't avoid it any longer. He had to know. It was his right to know, and frankly after thinking it over every minute of her time for over a year, she decided that her reasons for never telling him to begin with weren't good enough anymore. It wasn't fair to him. It wasn't fair to either of them.

**Almost two years earlier.**

It had been a stupid idea. She'd found him late one evening sitting on the couch in the living room watching television and drinking a scotch. She didn't see anything wrong at the moment because she knew he liked his occasional drink and though he did it often, she'd only actually seen him drunk twice. She approached him near the couch to let him know she was done with her work and that she was going home when he looked up at her with that charming smile that always seemed to make her heart flare. He offered her a drink, completely ignoring her intentions to leave.

"I'm sorry Mr. Stark, but I don't think it would be very professional of me to be drinking with my boss." She tried to hold her ground and not be led to change her mind, something he was unusually good at doing.

"Oh come on _Pepper_" he emphasized her name as a reminder to her to stop with the formalities and call him by his first name as well, "you just said you were done working, which means you wouldn't be drinking with your boss, you'd be drinking with a friend. Plus it's storming outside, do your really want to go out there?" and as if the whole world was against her at that moment, thunder struck outside and justified his statement all the more.

Giving in to his insistence, she took a seat next to him on the couch, taking the cup that he held out for her.

"Fine, but only while I wait for the rain to die down, _Tony"_ he smiled back at her, seemingly pleased with himself and turned back to the show that was playing on the television. They both sat on the couch for a few minutes sipping their drinks while they watched the evening news report. She watched from the corner of her eye as he stared intently at the television.

"I didn't know you were such fan of the evening news, Mr. Stark." She commented.

"I'm not, I just watch it for the newscaster, and for the last time stop calling me Mr. Stark" she rolled her eyes at him and looked back at the television to try to find what he meant.

"You mean you find her attractive?" she finally asked after a few minutes of watching the ditzy blond who seemed like she'd be better suited for a job at the MTV beach house than the evening news.

"Maybe I do. Does that make you jealous?" he turned to look at her and she found herself staring intently at his brown eyes feeling a faint blush coming on.

"No" she muttered, he laughed at that. In retrospect, she thought, maybe she shouldn't have been so obviously bitter when she said that, and thrown back a witty statement at him.

"Well I don't worry anyways. Actually I play a little game with myself. Every time she reports a new story, I try to guess if she's actually going to use all the words correctly, if I get it wrong I take a shot." He waved his hand at the shot glasses sitting on the table in front of them.

"Oh, come on. She can't be that bad. I mean she's reporting a story about a bunch of high school students running a car wash."

"Well, Pepper, why don't take me up on the challenge then. If she reports the whole thing correctly, I'll take a shot, but if she tries to sound witty-and stupid- might I add, you get to take a shot." She thought it over for a few seconds and figured what the heck the storm doesn't seem to want to stop; it couldn't hurt to have a little fun for once.

"Deal." Worst thing she could have ever said.

After several hours of sitting in front of the television and drinking, the night found them both very drunk. By this time neither of them were thinking clearly, and any reservation they may have had before about getting together was quickly thrown out the window.

The next morning after the much eventful night, Pepper woke to find herself sleeping in her boss's bed with her very naked boss lying next to her. Shock hit full fledged for about ten seconds. _How the heck did I get here? Oh my God, did we sleep together?! _It was still early enough that she knew he would not wake up, so she quickly grabbed her clothes and left for home. She vaguely remembered the night before, and she certainly didn't remember sleeping with him, but she knew in her gut that they probably did. She thought at that moment that maybe she should not go back to work. _Maybe I should just leave the_ _country._ But after debating with herself for a few minutes she decided at that moment that the best thing she could do is just act normal, and pretend that the previous had not affected her. _Maybe he was also too drunk to remember._

When she finally did make it to work that morning she found her previous night's partner working in his workshop as she found him most mornings. When she went down finally around noon to give him some papers to sign, everything appeared normal. He spoke to her as he normally did, and didn't give any hint of wanting to discuss what she would later label as "the night".

Things were as they normally were for a few weeks after that. She would come in, in the morning, do her paper work, relay messages to him, and go about her job as if nothing ever happened. For his part, she didn't know if he remembered the events well because she still was unable to get a clear picture, he never mentioned it and for that she was thankful. As much as she admittedly cared for her boss and enjoyed his company, she didn't think she wanted to be in a romantic relationship with him.

She thought everything was going fine after what happened that night. She was home free. A careless mistake had happened that she promised herself would not again, and everything would be just as it always had been. Or so she thought, but it wasn't until four weeks later that she realized something very wrong may have happened.


	2. Chapter 1

**A/N:** Hey guys, here's another chapter. School starts tomorrow, and these pst few weeks have been hectic, which is why it took me a week to update. I'll probably be updating about once a week on the weekends because its usually when I have the most time to write. I'm submitting this chapter now because I know I won't have time later, so sorry if there are any grammer/spelling mistakes which I maye have missed. I know the last chapter was a "prologue" and this is chapter 1, but this one pretty much continues it directly from the last. I promise the next chapter will be 2 years later though (or present) and that will bring some baby goodness, yay! :D

Thank you sooo much for those that have reviewed, favored my story, and put it on your alerts. I REALLY appreciate it. I'm a bit of a "new" writer so any reviews are really appreciated. If you haven't reviewed and are reading my story please do take the time to** REVIEW**. I know, I know, sometimes I get lazy too, or I forget, but it really is encouraging, and it helps me want to write faster. Ok, on to the story.

Hope you enjoy!

**Chapter 1**

**Still two years earlier.**

She'd left work early that evening during a very sunny day in Los Angeles. Nothing that day had been anything out of the ordinary. She'd gone about her work just as she normally did, interacted with her boss with the usual banter, and managed to get done early enough to take a trip to the grocery store for her bi-weekly shopping. Nothing that day seemed to have gone wrong. In fact for the most part she considered it a fairly good day. However she soon learned that she shouldn't judge a story before she read the end.

She'd gone to the store as planned. Walking up and down the aisles she found herself relaxed, and maybe even smiling a bit. She walked through the fruits section and bagged all the fruits she enjoyed to snack on. She went to the deli and ordered a pound of her favorite cheese. She even went to the bakery and picked out a box of home-made, er store-made, apple pie. _I deserve it, I think I've handled things pretty well_. Going through her mental check list as she approached the counters she realized that she'd forgotten to grab some shampoo which she'd ran out of that morning,

Walking over to the hygiene section of the store she took a light stroll through the aisles to make sure she wasn't forgetting anything else when she spotted the section which contained mainly a large sum of feminism products.

_Do I need those? I can't remember if I ran out…..when was my last period anyways…_

_Oh God._

All the blood fled from her face and she found herself standing pale in the middle of the aisle. _It's been six weeks. I'm never late._

_Oh God. This can't be happening._

She stood paralyzed unable to move as a thousand different thoughts rushed to her mind. _Could I be? No it's not possible…is it? Yes it is. And what if I really am-no don't say that. What would he say?_

_Oh God. Stop panicking. I need to know now._

Dismissing all previous thoughts of missing items from her head, she grabbed the shopping cart and raced to the aisle that carried self administered pregnancy tests. Without looking she grabbed five different tests, threw them in the cart along with the rest of her groceries, and rushed to the front of the store to pay for her items, only one thought in mind.

_Must find out now._

* * *

_Please, one line. Just one line. No, not two, No! _

She grabbed the fifth pregnancy stick she'd taken that night and hurled it forcefully into the trash can. Pacing back in forth in her small bathroom panic had swept over her once more with the realization that what she'd feared most at the moment was coming true.

_Why is this happening to me? Damn that man! One time and this happens. Why am I so bad about the pill….one pill once a day. That's it. UGH! Damn him for distracting me from myself!_

She had to figure this thing out. She had to sit down and patiently decide how this would change things and what she would do about them. She couldn't just go about her work everyday like normal as if nothing had happened. That strategy had already proven to be unsuccessful and there was no doubt that even a man, sometimes as dense as Tony Stark, would eventually take notice when her stomach started to swell up like a balloon. No, doing nothing would no longer be the answer. She _had_ to decide.

She walked into the darkness of her bedroom and sat on her bed, only the bathroom shining the slightest bit of light in. She put her head in her hands and struggled through the racing thoughts flying through her mind. In the end, she decided, it came down to two decisions. Tell him and face the potential consequences: being fired, him becoming angry, ending their friendship. Or not telling him, leaving, and make up a new life with her child without him.

Neither of them seemed quite right to her in that stressful moment. Even though she knew Tony wasn't a bad man, and that he may not fire her, or even be mad, she had no doubt that this in fact would change their relationship and whether it was for the better or for the worst, she wasn't really sure if she was ready for either just yet.

However, if she didn't tell him, she would have to leave her job, a job which despite its hardships at times, she did love, before her condition became noticeable. It wasn't an easy decision to make, but the next morning she had to go in to that debatable job once again and she did not want to face the father of her unborn child without having a decision made first.

Lying back on her bed she spread her arms above her head and opened her eyes to the darkness of the ceiling above her. She needed to relax. Make no rash decisions. Take a deep breathe and let everything sink in clearly.

She stayed that way for close to thirty minutes as she allowed her mind to settle. Everything had to wash over and then the final decision would be made. When she finally got up from the bed, she made her way back to the lighted bathroom and looked at herself straight in the mirror, confident about the decision she was making.

"Tomorrow, I will give him my notice."

* * *

The next morning, with her decision confidently made, Pepper marched her way into the Stark mansion sure of her prospects. First she'd start her day off as she normally did, checking over Tony's e-mails, going through his schedule, and making any phone calls that needed to be made. Then, when all that was done, she would type up a formal letter of resignation, explaining to her dear boss that she would no longer be able to offer her assistance because of family issues that would force her to move to the country's other coast. Which she would also do.

She'd thought about the details of her story all night and sharpened them that morning. She figured that if she told him she had been offered another job, he would try to convince her to stay by offering more money, gifts, or any other incentives. Plus, it didn't even seem believable to her to even _try_ to apply for another job because she had never given him any signs of being dissatisfied with her employment.

Instead she had decided that she would tell him that she was basically being forced to move to the other side of the country where her family was because her father had become ill, and her being an only child, needed to go back to her parent's home in order to help her mother take care of him. _Forgive me father for making you sick. _Truth be told, it wasn't that far from the truth. She would in fact be moving back near her parent's, and she would also be seeing them a lot more often…_he didn't need to know my father is actually healthy as a horse._

After he believed her story, and hopefully he would, she would assure him that she may return some day, if he still needed her assistance, and that they could keep in touch through e-mail if he wished, _as soon as she showed him how to check his properly. _She'd decided this because she knew that even though her decision had been made to not tell him about her situation then, that one day, maybe soon, she would decide she needed to and she needed to leave that window open in their friendship.

After she typed up the official letter, she gathered herself up from the couch and walked calmly towards the basement where she knew he was currently working. She took each step cautiously making sure to keep her confidence and not allow herself to slip when she went ahead with her story.

Deep inside she knew she was being a bit selfish. Okay, maybe a lot selfish. But she still couldn't fight the idea of not telling him. And it's not like she never wanted to let him know, she just felt she wasn't ready yet and she needed the time to get everything settled right. Plus, it wasn't just a big change for him, it was in fact a much bigger change for her. She'd never been pregnant before and she hadn't even considered having children yet. To her this was a total shock, something she had absolutely not prepared for, and the knowledge that in a few months she would be a mother and the caregiver to a small and fragile human being terrified her. Add dealing with the inappropriate situation that had occurred between her and her employer and her system may just about burst.

When she reached the glass door to the entrance of the workshop she observed Mr. Stark on the other side working on his gadgets. It made her smile to see him doing that. He still appeared as a child to her, playing eagerly with his toys. Despite his womanizing, alcohol drinking, car speeding, gambling ways, she was still able to see the innocence and good within him and that was what made things so much harder for her. She knew him too well, probably better than anyone, _did she love him?_ Maybe, she wasn't sure. And though she knew she may be hurting him, she knew she had to at this time, for both of them.

Taking one last deep breath she put the code into the system and opened to the door. He looked up as soon as she'd opened it and smiled at her. _This is going to be so hard._ She walked, keeping her confident grace as she made her way over to him and prayed that she would be able to keep up her façade throughout their conversation.

She knew, inside, that things _had_ to be like this, there was no other way.

* * *

He knew her too well. As soon as she walked in the door, she could see that he'd noticed the difference in her demeanor. No matter how hard she tried to look as casual as possible, the inner struggle within her seeped through and he immediately took notice.

"Is everything okay, Pepper?"He inquired as she approached him, his usual confidence kept intact despite the worrisome question.

"Uh, yes-well no actually, there _is_ a slight problem." His confidence dented a bit and the worry lines formed on his face as he stood still and gave her his full attention, leaving the piece that he was working on gently on the ground. She hadn't wanted to jump into things so quickly, but her panic at the situation made all other thoughts leave her mind.

"What is it?" he seemed genuinely worried now. She didn't normally come to him saying there was a "problem". Their exchanges were commonly light, even comical. Or sometimes lacking anything but normal employee-employer banter on the more stressful days when they each had their minds elsewhere. This wasn't helping her case.

"Oh, nothing with the company Mr. Stark, it's just. It's a family issue…for me."He stayed quiet, allowing her to continue.

"My dad is sick. My mom called last night to tell me about it. She said she needs my help. You know I have no other siblings so I'm the only that could help her. I came here to give you my notice." She noticed him relax a bit after she told him that, _maybe he wasn't getting it._

"Is that it, Pepper? You can take some time off if you'd like. And you don't have to give me an extended notice, you can go today if you'd like." No, he wasn't getting it.

"Actually, I wasn't talking about a small vacation Mr. Stark, I was…I don't know when I'd be able to come back…." Her gaze had left him when she said that, but when she found him not answering, she lifted her eyes and saw the shocked expression on his face. He stared blankly at her; she could see he was searching for something to say.

"You don't know when you may return?" He spoke slowly and calmly. In all the time she'd worked for him, Pepper could not remember a time when she'd see him caught so off guard. Even after Afghanistan and the whole Iron Man fiasco, he'd always maintained his confidence and self-being. _Great. I hadn't planned for this reaction. I need to fix this._

"Well, I mean, I can't give you a certain amount of time. It may be a few weeks, up to maybe a year." He seemed to calm a bit, she continued."We can still keep in touch, though. You know its nothing against you, Tony, I've enjoyed working for you-despite some of the recent chaos-but I really must go help my parents. I'd be open to come back, if you'd still need me."

She could tell from his change in posture that her words had helped.

"When do you plan on leaving?" he asked her.

"Probably by the end of the month, a few more weeks I guess." He nodded. For a moment they stayed looking at each other. She stared into his brown eyes, and saw the sadness in his them. She felt it too. She felt it more so because she knew that she was lying to him, that she inevitably would be hurting him. She refused to change her mind.

"I'll miss you." his words were soft and caring. It made her heart hurt to hear him them out loud. She'd miss him too. She wanted to tell him so, she wanted to close the distance between them and put her arms around him. _She_ wanted to comfort _him_, when in reality she knew, he should probably be the one comforting her. The fear of what was coming for them boiled within her. She couldn't speak those simple words aloud back to him. It'd be too real, it'd be too much.

She settled for simply smiling back, showing him she appreciated his sentiment. She broke their gaze and turned away from him, settling herself back into her "job mode".

"I need to finish sending out some e-mails Mr. Stark. I'll come down again later to give you any updates."She didn't wait for an answer. This was as far as she could go. Short, fast, and painless, or at least with as little pain as possible. She turned around and walked towards the door, out of the shop, out of his presence, and soon out of his life.


	3. Chapter 2

Here's the next chapter, it starts two years after the last or the present, hope you enjoy! Don't forget to REVIEW!

**Present**

Entering the mansion felt eerily familiar to her. It appeared as if nothing had changed. Two years had come and gonend yet is seemed, as she scanned the living room around her, that everything still lay as it did the night she left. The furniture was still the same. No upgrade on any of the electronic devises, tv's, sterero, nothing, and that was something was notorious for. The same decoration, the same design. It even seemed like the controller for the television was still as she had left it.

In that instant, taking everything in, and realizing just how profound an effect her leaving had really been on her former boss, she felt a pang of guilt within her. _Maybe I made a mistake. Maybe I shouldn't have ever left._ But she couldn't change that now. _I must face what's happened and hope he takes things well…or at least still talks to me after this._

Her thoughts were abruptly disrupted when she heard Happy walking in behind her with the child carrier and her bag.

"Nothing seems to have changed much in the past few years, huh Happy?" she commented, seeing if maybe he'd tell her more.

"No ma'am. Mr. Stark was been surprisingly tame since your departure. He spends most of his time down in his workshop working on his cars or his suit. I don't even remember anybody being with him the times I've driven him home."

_Tony Stark…tame? _

It didn't make sense to her. The Tony she knew was always so active, always on the move. Involved in many things and even though he did spend quite a large amount of time in his shop, it never used to consume him. The news didn't make the guilt within her lighten in the least bit, instead it started turning into a bit of fear that maybe the situation may not be able to be handled as well as she hoped. There was only one way to find out though, but first she needed to find him.

"Uh, Jarvis, are you there?"

"Yes Ms. Potts, very much. Welcome back. It seems you've got quite a surprise for Mr. Stark." She smirked to herself. It always surprised her just how sophisticated Jarvis was that he could inquire on such things that many people could not.

"Yes, Jarvis. Still can't keep any secrets from you. Where is Mr. Stark anyways?"

"Mr. Stark is currently working on his suit down in his shop." Of course, now she felt dumb just asking. "He has been awaiting your arrival. Should I alert him that you're here?" No, not yet. She needed to think. She hadn't been expecting this change by him. She'd known he _had_ changed since his return from Afghanistan and the creation of Iron Man, but it had never been quite like this. No, she'd have to rethink how she'd approach this.

"Uh, no Jarvis. That's okay. I'll go down there and surprise him myself. Thank You."

Looking down at the sleeping child in her arms, she decided that she didn't want to jump at everything all at once. She would go down and talk to him first and then she could introduce father and son to each other. After-all, that is what she'd come for, and at this point she figured keeping the secret from him any longer would only make things worst.

Turning back to the driver, and very good friend still waiting with the baby carrier, she asked him politely to watch the child for a few minutes. He obliged happily, taking the child from her. Walking in the direction of the workshop, she took a deep breath and braced herself, hoping, no praying, that everything would go well.

* * *

She stood outside the shop, looking through the glass walls and observing him. His back was to her as he worked feverishly on his suit. She'd seen this scene before, dozens of times while she'd worked for him. He'd indulge himself heavily on his mechanics, sometimes so much that even when there was no music blasting from the speakers he still wouldn't notice her approaching. She hoped this would be one of those times.

She put in the code to unlock the doors and walked in. Immediately she was assaulted by the awful smell of sweat and motor oil_._ She walked carefully towards Tony Stark's sitting form in front of the suit, trying desperately not to alert him. Her mind was still racing trying to decide what exactly she'd say to him and she needed every second she could to think about it.

Unfortunately, just as luck hadn't been with her on 'the night', it chose not to side with her on this day either. Just as she was only a few steps from reaching him, he turned around and stood up in front of her. Despite her fears, she was satisfied to find a smile on his face, and though he was a mess, smeared in motor oil, sweat, and God knows what else, he still looked surprisingly up-beat to her.

_Maybe I was over-reacting._

The look on her face must have given away her plan to surprise him because his next words answered her unspoken question.

"I saw you through the reflection on the suit." His smile stayed on him, obviously happy to see her. She returned the smile and found herself relaxing into a familiar atmosphere.

"Hmm, you seemed to have been working hard…maybe too hard." She raised her eyebrows signaling to his attire.

"Oh, yeah, I started working on a new upgrade for the suit last night and I guess I got caught up. I'm sorry, I should have showered this morning, knowing that you'd be coming today. I just-" She cut him off as when felt him heading into a rant, something she wasn't used to hearing from his usual confident self.

"It's ok, Mr. Stark. It wouldn't be you, if I didn't find you down here in the shop covered in motor oil in the morning." He smiled again at her, the discomfort from his previous apologies quickly leaving him. She had never seemed him like this before. He seemed like the same old Tony, happy, charismatic, and fun to be around. Yet at the same time, he seemed uncomfortable, almost unsure of himself. _Maybe it's just because of the time. _They stared at each other for a few moments, taking the other in, before he spoke up again.

"It's good to see you again, _Pepper_" he emphasized the last word, reminding her in his own way to stop calling him Mr. Stark.

"I'm good, Tony. You seem to be doing good as well, it seems."

"Ah, yeah, I've been great. Look, let me shower really quick, as you're probably not enjoying the odor coming from around me, and then we can talk again, ok?" She nodded at him.

She watched him as he clean his hands off with a towel and then make his way towards the small bedroom/bathroom put in the shop. Too many nights of him working tirelessly through the late hours and then crawling his way up the stairs to his bedroom had made him decide to finally install a room and bathroom into the shop.

As soon as she was left alone in the large workshop she started to look at the room around her. It was still filled with the usual robots, tables, instruments, and cars. Though she noted, there weren't any new cars. And one of them seemed to have a small dent in the front.

"Jarvis? Did Mr. Stark fall through the roof again?"

"Mr. Stark has been trying out some new equipment for his suit Ms. Potts. He happened to accidentally hit the car when he was thrust backwards into it."

"Well, at least I know he's still up to his old tricks. Sometimes I think he may suffer more injury down here than on his missions."

"Yes, that is very much a concern of mine as well. However, he hasn't suffered any significant major injury on any of the missions yet-or in the lab for that matter."

_Well at least I don't have to worry about that._

"Jarvis does Mr. Stark still attend as many outings as he did before I left,and before Afghanistan?"

"No, Ms. Potts. Ms. Stark has certaintly become a new man since his return. Especially these last few years, he mostly dedicates himself to fixing up his suit and the missions."

With this piece of information, she actually felt a slight smile come across her face. _Tony was a new man_. She had felt this before she'd even left two years ago. After he'd come back from Afghanistan she'd rarely have to 'throw' any women out in the morning like she used to do so often before. She was surprised to find herself relieved by it. This finally felt right, she was no longer afraid of the consequences. Tony _was_ a new man. A better man, maybe even father material…she hoped.

After a few more minutes of sitting at one of the benches and looking around the shop, the man in question finally came back out of the bathroom, newly refreshed, hair slicked back and looking as handsome as she'd always remembered him.

"Did you learn anything while you were out here waiting?" he spoke in a teasing voice as he approached her near the bench.

"Yes, actually, I did. I learned that you are still as clumsy in this shop as you always have been." he followed her eyes towards the dented car.

"That…that was a little experiment."

"You were trying to find out how hard you could knock yourself into a car before it created a dent? Was this for field research?" He laughed at her witty remark. She loved his laugh. It was always genuine, and pure. He wasn't the type to show any pretenses for anybody, so she knew that when he laughed, it was real.

Their eyes met once again, and the silence was brought upon them for a few seconds. It was déjà-vu. It'd been happening already too often in the short time she'd been back, but this time it didn't make her feel uncomfortable. This silence wasn't from a lack of words to say, but from a desire to just want to admire each other. Remember the things they'd so long missed, and join the connection they'd once strongly felt. It was natural.

She was the first to break their gaze this time. She'd come here with a purpose-and said purpose was still waiting for her upstairs. She couldn't wait forever again.

"Tony" she was serious this time, no teasing or humor in her voice, "I-I came here for something actually-" he cut her off.

"Is it your dad? How is he anyways?"

"My dad? Oh yes, my dad is fine. He's healthy now, back to being the same old dad." She gave a nervous laugh remembering how much she'd tangled up her lies and how she'd have to untangle them. He noticed that and he stepped closer to her, invading her space.

"Are you okay Pepper, you seem nervous?" He peered into her, once again teasing her with the close proximity. He knew he'd had that effect on her before, and he was testing her reaction.

"I'm-I'm fine Mr. Stark, it's just that's not what I came to talk to you about."

"Well shoot, what is it? I'm all ears." He stepped back and turned waiving his arms in the air and emphasizing signal to go.

_Just go, just do it. It's no or never._

"Do you remember two years ago,before I left of course,when we…" She wasn't allowed to finish her sentence. It seemed when the evil forces of unluckiness want to strike, they seemed to do it in full force.

Just as she was about to tell him, she was cut off by an insistant knocking on the glass door of the shop. She knew who it'd be before she even turned. She looked up at Tony and noticed a confused look in his eyes.

_Oh no. This is not how I wanted it to happen._

"Ms. Potts!" The muffled voice called.

She finally turned towards the door to find Happy looking rather distraught with her son in his arms crying like there was no tomorrow. All other thoughts left her as she ran towards the door.

"Ms. Potts, I don't know what happened. We were just playing, when he started to get fussy and then suddenly he was crying and he wouldn't stop", he looked over her shoulder to his boss currently watching them, and whispered the last part to her, "sorry."

"Don't worry about it Happy. Thank you, you did the right thing." She took the crying child from his arms and tried to rock him to try to calm him down. As soon as he was back in his mother's arms the child immediately started calming down.

"Aw, baby, you just missed mommy didn't you." She kept bouncing the child in her arms as he wrapped his arms around her neck and rested his small head on her shoulder.

"Shsh, yes, just calm down." She whispered. When the boy was finally completely calmed in her arms, she once again became aware of her surroundingsand noticed the child's father currently watching them from across the room.

She'd been fully prepared to come clean to him, to finally tell him the whole truth, but now she was afraid that the sudden shock might work against her.

She turned her body towards him and dared to make eye contact. He looked like he'd been waiting for her to catch his attention.

"Mommy?" it was a rhetorical question. One word, one simple word was all he'd said, but still it spoke volumes. She could tell by the tone in his voice when he'd said it that he wasn't entirely happy about with the situation.

He walked closer to mother and child looking back and forth between them.

"This is your son?"

"Yes." She nodded softly, still holding the small child close to her. He walked around them, closely inspecting the boy, clearly surprised by the embrace she currently held.

"You met someone?" _Jealousy._ It bled through those three words. _He was jealous._

"No, Tony, I didn't meet anyone. He's-"

_JUST TELL HIM!_ She screamed at herself, he waited for her to finish.

"-he's yours."

* * *

Dum Dum DUMMMM!! Yup, I left it at a cliffy. 'Ooh, what's going to happen next?' If I get lots of reviews I promise I'll try to update really soon, like sometime this week probably, instead of having to wait until next Sunday. So remember if you want to know what happens soon, please, please, please review! :D


	4. Chapter 3

**AN:** Hey you guys! I'm soooo sorry that I've taken so long to update. I promised you guys a quick update after the last chapter, and you guys were awesome enough to leave me some wonderful reviews, and I ended up taking longer :(. I'm sorry! I actually had the chapter almost all done last Wed, but I wasn't feelig very satisfied with it and then I ended up going out of town before I had time to revise it and today is the first day this week I've really been able to work on it. Anyways, no more excuses, here is the next instalment. Hope you guys still enjoy it, and THANK YOU so much to EVERYONE who has reviewed, favored my story, and put it on your alerts, you guys are FANTASTIC!! I can't thank you enough, and I hope that this chapter will be able to answer some of the concerns you guys have been having.

Hope you guys enjoy this chapter, I _can_ promise that things will get lighter, and fluffier, within the next chapter, and though I don't want to promise I'll have it up before next week, I do _hope_ to have it by the end of this weekend because it's mostly already written. :D

* * *

"No, Tony, I didn't meet anyone. He's-"

"-he's yours."

The silence that followed her words was ear shattering. What must have been only a few seconds felt like years. She desperately wanted to scream, take everything back. 'Haha, just kidding, April Fools! Please don't freak out'. She couldn't do that any of that though. With her son in her arms, all she could do was stand there and wait for a reaction.

As soon, as she'd spoken the words, Tony immediately stopped his walking around them. He'd frozen mid step and turned towards her. He looked momentarily at her expression, and then towards the child in her arms. He didn't step forward, he didn't try to get closer to the boy, he simply looked stunned.

"He's...mine?" he spoke more to himself, than her, but still she nodded, reassuring him that the words he'd heard were indeed correct. She couldn't think of any other words to say at that moment anyways. She was afraid of saying the wrong thing, of turning the situation more fragile, and she wanted to wait until she got a feel of what his feelings were before she said more.

At her reassurance, Tony actually took a step back from them. He turned his body away from her, one hand on his hip, the other running through his still damp hair trying to catch his thoughts. He was trying to find the right words to say. After all the one-night stands, all the promiscuity that he'd run through in his previous years, this was still not something he was prepared for.

"How could this..? When…?" she didn't know if he was speaking to her or just trying to work things out himself, but she felt the need to answer his question anyway. She needed to come clean, with everything, from the very beginning. That fateful night had to finally become more than a vague memory and the cause of said circumstances.

"Do you remember when you invited me to drink with you one night after work? How drunk we got?"Her words were soft, trying to sooth everything in. She was afraid that a different tone might evoke an unwanted reaction.

He finally turned around and faced her again. The hand that had been running through his hair fell to his side. The expression he showed was still not one she was looking for. He looked confused, worried, scared, maybe even…angry? It was normal, she tried to convince herself. He had every right to be angry.

"That night? I barely remember that night…" his voice trailed off, he looked down searching through his mind to find the details, pretending that he couldn't find them. He snapped his head up then, this time she was sure she found anger in his features.

"Why didn't you tell me? Why did you run?" his words were stern, strong, and definitely audible. Those were the two questions that she'd gone over in her head over and over again, she was never quite sure of the answer, she only knew what she felt when she thought of them and she decided honesty was the best way to go.

"I-I was scared Tony. I was afraid of how it would affect our relationship. I was afraid of how you'd react…."

"You were afraid of how I'd react? Don't you trust me Pepper? Did you think I'd be angry with you?" his voice was escalading with every word, the anger he was feeling was quickly over-coming every other emotion.

"Angry? No! I don't know, maybe. I wasn't sure Tony, you have to understand. I was _scared_ I wasn't thinking straight, I did the only thing I could-"

"You could have just told me!" This was exactly what she had feared. Anger and disappointment. Disappointment at her from him, which in turn, became disappointment with herself. She wanted to go back, take everything back, and start all over. Go back to when she first lied to him and just tell him. Tell him everything. 'Tony I'm having your child'. If he would have been angry then, it wouldn't have been her fault; she wouldn't have felt so_ guilty_ then.

The child in her arms started squirming. He'd been going back and forth between light sleep and looking around behind her, but with the increasing tension in the room the boy had become fussy and she felt him now on the verge of tears again. She held on to him tighter.

"Tony, I'm sorry. You have to believe me. If I could turn back the time now, knowing what I currently know, knowing your reaction, I would have told you-" She took a breathe, she tried to keep her words calm, and even, both to try to keep the boy in her arms form crying, and also to try to take some control of the situation. "-but you have to believe me when I say I was _scared_, I was terrified. I was carrying a child Tony,_ your_ child, it wasn't exactly the ideal position I wanted to find myself in."

He stopped the pacing that he had started sometime in the middle of their argument and asked her another question without turning to her.

"What about your dad? Was he even sick?"

"He-I did go back to my parents. No, he wasn't sick, he's fine, he's…been fine."

"So that was a lie too." It wasn't question, it was a statement. It _was _a lie, there were lots of them.

His pacing started once again. She just watched him, letting him brew over the new information. She'd never seen him like this before, this angry. It wasn't a shade of emotions that she'd ever seen so strongly in his features before. Pacing, worried, frustrated. He'd been kidnapped, tortured, betrayed, he ran one of the richest companies in the country-a very stressful job-, yet this, _this_, was what had set him off.

She waited patiently for him to say something. The silence, compared to the previously harsh words, was making the tension worst. She was anxious awaiting another reaction. She felt impatient. She wanted to pretend she was a kid again and just end the argument with a simple 'so are we ok or what?'

"I can't believe this Pepper. I thought you trusted me, I really thought that after what happened that you wouldn't be afraid to be honest with me!"

"I'm sorry Tony. I really am. I'm-"the atmosphere had become too much. He quickly cut her off and spoke the words she had been dreading, but knew were coming, since the beginning of the argument.

"Pepper, I just, I need to be alone right now ok." There it was. No please Pepper, no I promise we'll talk it over later, nothing. He didn't even appear worried by the child's soft cries. He simply, in not so many words, had asked her to get out. She couldn't help but feel a surge of anger herself. She didn't know where it had come from. Maybe it had been hidden underneath the lies she'd always kept. She'd never made herself the victim, to the contrary, she always thought she was to blame for keeping everything hidden, but in that instant when he'd told her he needed to be left alone, when he'd asked for _his_ time to think things through, something within her had snapped, and suddenly the anger that had been flourishing came forth.

"Fine. Have your time Tony. Have all the time you need. Frankly I don't care. We've been fine alone so far, and we can continue to be fine without you. Take that as you wish; I didn't come here asking anything from you, I'm just finally coming clean. I'm finally putting on _your_ shoulders what's been riding on _mine_ for _TWO_ years." She took a gulp watching his expression change with every word.

"If you decide you can talk _civilly_ about this, Happy knows where to find me."And with that she turned towards the door and stormed out, leaving him standing there, once again shocked and confused as he tried to figure out what had all just happened.

* * *

After Pepper left, Tony was left alone in the huge mansion. He still couldn't get his thoughts straight. _He had a son?_ It was difficult to believe. _He had a son._ It almost put a smile on his face, but it quickly vanished as he remembered the rest of the situation.

Pepper had lied to him. She'd hidden the fact that he had a son for more than two years, and she'd left him out and dry under false pretenses. She'd said she needed to leave because her father was sick, and he'd believed her. He'd trusted her. As iffy as her story had been he'd let it go. He didn't try to fight her decision. As much as he'd wanted to scream and beg, 'please don't leave', he hadn't. He'd simply accepted what she'd told him, and hoped that one day she would come back to him. He couldn't quite grasp it all.

He needed a drink.

He made his way up the stairs to the main floor and headed straight for the kitchen. He grabbed a bottle of scotch, not even bothering with a cup and moved to the couch in the living room. He sat down and opened the bottle, taking a large gulp before he sat back, bottle nestled in the crook of his arm, and let everything fall over.

He thought about everything, about the very beginning. If he was completely honest with himself, he'd have to admit that the relationship, the connection he felt with Pepper, had started from the moment he'd met her. She had worked for him longer than any other assistant he'd had. She knew him well. He didn't even have to ask her to do certain things sometimes, she simply knew how and when to do them. She put up with him, with all the one-night stands, all the parties, all the drinking, everything, and she'd always stayed by his side, loyal.

Those feelings, however, hadn't truly made their way unto the surface of his mind though until after his capture in Afghanistan. He'd come back and she'd been right there with him again. She was the first person he went up to when getting off the plane back home, and realistically the person he was probably happiest to see. He'd even told her, she was his closest family. He had no parents, no siblings, and no longer even the one person he'd once thought of as an 'uncle'. He had no one. His assistance was the closest thing to family. It was a sad, but true, and yet it didn't bother him.

He wasn't angry because he had a son. He was still trying to digest that, and it wasn't something he was at all against. He had to admit, in the new stages of this development, it kind of even made him happy. He wasn't that young anymore after-all and he was no longer the womanizer he once was. He was over that, he'd learned that hard way that there were bigger, more important things to worry about. He thought about having a family, it didn't seem so far off to him. His recently developed feelings for Pepper had made that reassurance all the more-

He took another swig of alcohol and buried himself further into the couch, putting his legs up and throwing his head on the arm rest. He closed his eyes and tried shatter the anger that was forcing itself back up again.

-but Pepper had lied. Hadn't trusted him, hadn't been honest with him. Did she really think so little of him? She was the one person who he actually confided in, the person he'd most cared about, yet it seemed like she didn't see him at all in the same light. She couldn't even trust him with news that to most people is considered good. _Had she thought I wouldn't want the child? That I would turn her away?_

He'd let her go after-all and he hadn't followed. They'd spoken on and off, through e-mail mostly, during her time away, but he'd never gone to her. He felt foolish now for not having done it, but he hadn't wanted to push her-or turn her completely away. With other things, other people, he would have, but with Pepper, he was usually more careful. In all the time she'd been gone he hadn't even hired another assistant, it'd been hard but he'd managed because he felt hopeful that she would come back eventually. To tame his burning desire to chase after her he'd consumed himself in his work. Building his suit, fixing his cars, going on missions, and whatever else was needed of him at the company.

And yes, he did remember that night…sort of. It was blurry, and vague and he wouldn't bet on the specifics of it in a court of law, but then again, it wasn't every night he woke up alone in his bedroom, naked, with his clothes thrown all over his room. He was surprisingly neater than that. And of course he remembered the night before; convincing Pepper to stay and have a drink with him. He'd put two and two together the morning after and had made the connection. He'd been afraid of her reaction, he thought that maybe she wouldn't even come in to work, but she had, and she'd pretended like everything was normal. Confused by her reaction, and feeling a bit rejected by the thought that it didn't mean anything to her, he'd followed along and said nothing.

After a few hours of lying on the couch and drowning his feelings into a bottle of alcohol, he finally came upon a settled conclusion.

_What am I doing? She's finally here. She's come back, she's come clean, why aren't I there with her?_

He took one last swig of the now half empty bottle of scotch and got up. He needed to do it today, anymore waiting and things would become more difficult to unravel. It was late, but he needed to fix himself up before going to her.

Walking towards his bedroom he pulled out his cell phone and finally made the phone call he'd been needing to make all day.


	5. Chapter 4

Thank you so much to those that have reviewed, you guys are great! I really appreciate it. This chapter brings in the fluffy stuff that I wanted to bring in to this story since before starting it. Hope you guys like it! As always reviews are welcomed :D.

* * *

The pounding on the door was incessant. It was after nine and most of the people in the building were gearing down and getting ready to head to bed. Happy had driven manically due to Tony's insistence and had taken his boss his former assistance's location; a girl friend's condo 20 minutes from the mansion.

The person who answered and finally ended the on-going banging was said friend, looking much irritated and with a glare that almost made Tony want to turn away and pretend he'd knocked by accident.

"Is Pepper here?" he asked careful to maintain his anxiety under control and not push her aside to rush in and look himself.

"Maybe, who's asking?" the glare had yet to leave her face.

"My name is Tony, uh Tony Stark," The lack of a response told him that that name didn't much to her, "she came to see me earlier. I really need to speak to her."

She gave him the once over one more time and then immediately closed the door before asking him to wait. A few seconds later it was opened again, this time by Pepper.

"Pepper, hi, how are you?"

"I'm fine Tony. Can I help you with something?"

"I-I came here to apologize. I'm….sorry, for how I reacted." She stayed still waiting for him to continue.

"I-can I come in? I think maybe we should talk further." She simply nodded and stepped aside allowing him to enter. Once he was in she led him to the living room and offered him a drink.

"Coffee?" He said as he took a seat on the couch. He spotted the friend who'd opened the door for him standing in the hallway and he watched her as she stepped through one of the doors and closed it behind her. A few minutes later Pepper came back with two cups. She handed one to him and sat down on the chair across from him waiting silently for him to start.

"When you told me I had a son, I was shocked, but that wasn't what shocked me. What shocked me, Pepper, was that I'd had this son with someone who I felt I trusted and who I thought trusted me. Someone who I was happy to consider a friend-maybe even more-but I was disappointed to find that it had taken two years to finally learn the truth".

"I-"

"Wait, please, let me finish." She nodded at him, appeasing his desire to continue.

He took a sip of coffee before he started again.

"After you stormed out today, I was left alone with a lot of time to think. I thought about you, about me, about us. I though about why I was mad, why I felt so hurt by your actions and I came upon two conclusions."

He paused for a moment before continuing and watched her. She'd been listening intently to his speech. Her expression looked stressed, ready to jump in and defend herself once again, but still she waited patiently for him to continue.

"First, I've come to realize that you're more than just a friend to me, that you have been for a while now. I care deeply about you Pepper, as a friend, as family, as more than that and I think maybe that's why I reacted the way I did, because I have never felt this way about another person before."

"Tony…" he waved his hand at her gesturing to wait for him to continue. She fell silent again, the impatience for wanting to speak growing with each sentence.

"The second conclusion I came upon was that I don't care anymore. The lies all that, they don't matter, what's important to me now is that everything is out in the open. You told me your secret and now I'm telling you mine, and I hope that this will change things, that we can grow from here, because Pepper, I don't want to loose you again." He fell silent then and waited for her to say something. He hugged the hot cup of coffee tightly between his hands and found himself growing nervous by the silence. He had just basically told her how he felt about her and he felt a bit frightened that she wouldn't feel the same way.

He felt stupid, like a teenager again, waiting to see if the girl he had a crush on would say yes to going to the spring dance. This was bigger than that though, way bigger. This was….love? Maybe it was, maybe it was too early to tell, but either way for him, for all three of them, this could mean changes.

After a few minutes of gathering her thoughts Pepper finally spoke up, her eyes keeping sight with the cup in front of her.

"I'd be lying to you if I said I wanted no more than a platonic relationship with you Tony. That night…that was more than just a drunk reaction I think. As your employee I was always afraid of taking things any further with you, but…even though I can't promise anything…I know I'm no longer afraid to try."

She looked up when she finished and met his eyes. There was a small smile on his lips and his eyes gleamed with hope. She returned the smile and felt a sudden surge of relief run through her. Unknowingly this was the moment she'd been waiting for this whole time; the moment when she could finally admit her growing feelings for her former boss.

"Can I see him?" he asked after he felt the emotions in the room level out.

"He's sleeping right now, but yes you can see him."

She got up from the couch and he followed after her as she led him to the same room which he'd previously seen her friend go into. As soon as they entered they found said friend sitting on the bed next to their sleeping son. She had a huge smile on her face, the baby monitor on the night stand next to her.

She quickly got up from the bed and crossed the room towards the door.

"I'll, uh, I'll be outside if you need me." She winked at Pepper, and smiled at Tony as she squeezed past them to leave the room.

As soon as they were alone Tony stepped close to the bed and sat next to the sleeping child who was lying on his stomach and sucking on his left thumb; his arms and legs splayed out around him.

Pepper moved closer to bed. She found herself almost unable to contain the happiness she was feeling at that moment. She watched Tony as he sat and just stared at their son, taking in the details of the boy's features.

"He's beautiful, Pepper." She smiled, relieved to finally be able to share this with him.

"He looks just like you." She told him. And he did, and it was one of the things that she loved the most. Even at barely a year and a half there was no mistaking that the boy would grow to look just like his father. He had messy brown hair and large brown eyes that were captivating to look at.

"I can't believe I'm just asking this, but, what did you name him?"

"Jason."

"Jason….?"

"Jason Potts." He cringed a bit, looking a bit put off by the fact that he wasn't given the Stark last name. It actually made her laugh a bit.

"Potts, hmm, I don't know Pepper, that may have to be fixed." He looked at her, a joking look on his face, but she knew he was serious.

"Ha ha ha Tony, very funny. In all honesty though, it's ok with me if you do want to change it."His smile grew. He was learning to accept this new development and enjoying it. Looking down at his son, his own son, who was obviously the very image of his father, Tony felt himself grow more fulfilled and comfortable.

"I can't wait to get to know him, see what he's like." He commented. At this an idea struck in Pepper's mind, a perfect way for father and son to interact. For a second she thought about not going ahead with it, thought maybe it was too soon, but in the end she decided to just trust her instinct.

"You know, Clara and I were thinking of doing some shopping this weekend, do some catching up. It would be great if you could watch Jason while we go."

"Sure, that sounds great. When, exactly?"He asked as still watching the boy and barely registering what exactly she was asking him.

"We were hoping….tomorrow." At this he froze and looked up at her, a perplexed look on his face.

"Tomorrow?"

* * *

"OK Tony, here's my number, here's Clara's number in case you can't reach me, and here's my pager number." She handed him a piece of paper scribbled with numbers on it, which he looked at with raised eyebrows.

"Pager number Pepper, seriously? Didn't those things go out of style years ago along with VHS tapes?" she rolled her eyes.

"I don't know Tony, but I don't care. When you have a kid, which you do now, you make every effort to be available any way you can." He looked at the numbers one more time and folded the paper putting it in his back pocket.

"Okay, well how long do you think you will take anyways? You know I've never done this before."

"I'm fully aware Tony that you're barely able to take care of yourself-"

"Hey I did okay these past two years." She continued ignoring his input.

"-but I also know that you are more than smart enough to be able take care of a child for a few hours. Besides, you've got Jarvis here who can help you. Clara and I won't take long; we'll be back around four."

"Okay, well have fun then. Now, hand him over." He held his arms out to her impatiently ready waiting for her to finally hand their son over to him.

"God, I can't believe I am crazy enough to be doing this." She said as gave him the child.

"Hey, I do believe it was your idea." He took the child and began making funny faces at him. The boy laughed and started playing with his father's hair, marveling at its slickness.

"Yeah, don't remind. Ok, don't forget what I told you about the diapers."

"Uh, yeah I….got that."

"As you've seen already he knows how to walk so you have to watch him closely or else he'll run off on you and be careful with the bots down stairs and-"

"Pepper, it's fine. I'm not completely incompetent when it comes to taking care of others you know, and I remember when you told me all this the first time."

She stopped her frantic movements and stared at him. He was holding Jason firmly in his arms as the boy made a mess out of his father's hair. Tony seemed completely unbothered by this, and for the first time that morning she didn't feel worried. _Everything's going to be ok._

"You're right." She stepped closer to Tony, putting the baby bag around his shoulder and leaned over to give Jason a kiss goodbye.

"Be good for your daddy ok?" the boy smiled up at her nodding.

"Take care and call me if you need _anything_." She grabbed her purse from the couch and headed towards the front door where Clara was already waiting in her car.

"What, I don't get a kiss?" Tony called out as she was leaving. She answered without turning, a smile plastered firmly on her face.

"Maybe next time Tony."

* * *

It was noon around the time that Pepper had gone shopping and left Jason alone with Tony. He was already feeling hungry again, after having had an early breakfast that morning when Pepper came over with Jason, so he decided that the first of bonding they would do would be to spend some time in the kitchen.

"Hey, kid, are you hungry? You think you want some food?" The boy responded by shaking his head up and down smiling enthusiastically.

"Foo'! yea!" taking that as reassurance that food needed to be made, Tony took grabbed the baby bag and took them to the kitchen. He sat Jason down in a tall chair he had bought for him earlier that morning and started rummaging through the bag Pepper had given him.

"Ok, then lets see what your mom put in here for you." He pulled out some diapers, shirts, and empty bottles before finding a number of Gerber baby food containers at the bottom. He pulled them out and set them on the counter observing them closely.

"Apple sauce?" he asked the boy.

"No."

"Peas? Bleh, no. Let's see creamy vegetables? Hmm, how about I fix us something instead, huh?" the boy simply smiled as he watched his father go through the contents in the bag.

Tony gathered all the items back up and threw them unceremoniously back into the bag. He set it down and then started going through the cupboards in the kitchen looking for something he could make. Honestly Tony didn't know much about cooking at all. He was used to somebody else always cooking for him, going to restaurants, or ordering out, but knew he had some ready made items in the cupboards that he could probably figure out how to make.

He finally found something that looked appealing enough to him that he knew he could share with Jason. He pulled out a box of Kraft's extra creamy macaroni and cheese and started reading the instructions.

"Boil four cups of water; add half a cup of milk, two spoonfuls of butter….ok. I think I can make this. What do you think?" He held up the box for the boy and let him have a look at the cover.

"Yummy." He responded while tapping on the box.

After finding a pot and measuring cup, which he felt he'd never seen before in his house, he set the water to boil and waited patiently.

He looked down at boy sitting at the chair next to him and found him staring right back. The big brown eyes, which matched his so closely, stared with such an intent curiosity, that Tony felt he was observing him as closely as he himself was observing the boy.

In the short time that he'd spent with his son the night before and this morning, Tony had learned quite a bit about the boy. He'd expected him to be a typical toddler, running around, screaming, making a mess, but he was surprised, and relieved, to find that the boy was nothing like that. Even at such a young age, it seemed like he already had a close understanding of the environment around him. When he and Pepper were talking, he would sometimes look at the boy and find him staring up at him or Pepper watching their movements as they talked. He was a pretty calm child, staying in place when he needed to, but still had a bright personality that kept him laughing and smiling constantly, and as Pepper had warned him, he wasn't immuned from running around and getting into trouble occasionally.

He wasn't usually too fussy, which he was thankful for. When he was left to play, he didn't go around throwing his toys or trying to break them, instead he would sit with his blocks or Lego's and start building them together. He was bright, very bright actually. Pepper told him that his doctor back home had recommended Jason get IQ testing as soon as it was possible, but she said she wasn't in any real hurry to start declaring their son a little prodigy. After all, considering who the father was, she had already anticipated that the boy would inherit his genius.

Tony's thoughts were interrupted when he heard the water boiling in the pot. He went over and finished preparing the mac and cheese and served a small amount on one plate and more on another. He took the small plate and set it on the table in front of Jason with a small fork he had found in the bag Pepper had left for him. He set his own plate across from him and sat down to eat.

"Hmm, this is actually pretty." Tony said after taking the first bite,"I guess I can add cooking to my long list of traits. You like it buddy?" He looked up to find the boy holding the fork unskillfully in his right hand trying to grab the small noodles, his tiny tongue sticking out of his mouth as he concentrated on the task in front of him.

Tony had to laugh a bit at that image and reached out to help him.

"Here, let me help you out." He told him. He set the fork properly in the boy's hand and wrapped his own hand around it as he guided the food into the boy's mouth. He took his time chewing the food and then set out again trying to grab the fork as his father had previously set it, but failing miserably.

In the end Tony had to feed most of the food to the boy himself, though he had succeeded in feeding himself a couple of times.

When they were done he took Jason out of his chair and set him down on the floor allowing him to stand next to him. An idea sparked in his mind, though he knew Pepper wouldn't be too thrilled, he felt he must share it with his son.

"You want to see all the cool robots I have in the shop downstairs?"

"Bots!"He didn't know if he really understood what he was asking him or just agreeing with everything he said, but Tony found he was having fun interacting with his son so far.

"Ok then, come on."He grabbed the toddler's small hand and led him to his work shop downstairs.

* * *

Yay! New Chapter! More father-son bonding with Tony and Jason in the next chapter! Love the fluff... :D


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